A major milestone has been reached today, with the approval of an amendment to the securities law by a ministerial legislative committee of the Israeli government. The amendment will ban the marketing of binary options to foreign citizens by Israeli providers.

If the new law is passed, binary options providers will be prohibited from doing business with foreign citizens. It states that the marketing of this product will fall under money laundering legislation “in light of the fraudulent nature that might accompany this industry.”

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It still remains for the new law to pass its first, second and third reading in the Israeli parliament. Binary options operations within Israel were banned by the Israeli Securities Authority (ISA) about a year ago, as the regulatory body’s stance on the matter equates this type of  Online Trading  Online Trading Online trading represents the trading of fiat currencies, digital currencies, commodities, stocks and indices, where traders and investors intend to make a profit, via the purchase or sale of the aforementioned products. This is done through an electronic network, made accessible by brokers in the form of an online trading platform or hub.Online trading continues to see a rapid growth year on year, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the number of brokers offering their services, with more money being spent on advertisements and sponsorships to attract potential traders. Secondly, more traders are aware of the ease in applying for online accounts; the low barrier to entry now means a trader only needs to deposit virtually as little as one wants in order to places trades. Thirdly, the improvement of financial technology, better performing hardware and software, leading to quick and consistent execution, which in turn is helped by higher liquidity, and reduced trading costs such spreads and commissions, have fueled the retail trading industry immensely. How to Trade Online?Before the emergence of the Internet, traders would have to place trades over the phone, which could be rather cumbersome, especially if one wanted to place multiple trades in a short space of time. Indeed, online trading has opened a new field of trading in the form of foreign exchange scalping, whether manually, or by way of automated trading robots. An example of online trading is the trading the foreign exchange market with a forex broker, using a platform which the broker will provide. The trader installs the platform on their computer, and they are given the information and tools needed to start trading. The most common online retail platform for forex trading is known as MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Online trading represents the trading of fiat currencies, digital currencies, commodities, stocks and indices, where traders and investors intend to make a profit, via the purchase or sale of the aforementioned products. This is done through an electronic network, made accessible by brokers in the form of an online trading platform or hub.Online trading continues to see a rapid growth year on year, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the number of brokers offering their services, with more money being spent on advertisements and sponsorships to attract potential traders. Secondly, more traders are aware of the ease in applying for online accounts; the low barrier to entry now means a trader only needs to deposit virtually as little as one wants in order to places trades. Thirdly, the improvement of financial technology, better performing hardware and software, leading to quick and consistent execution, which in turn is helped by higher liquidity, and reduced trading costs such spreads and commissions, have fueled the retail trading industry immensely. How to Trade Online?Before the emergence of the Internet, traders would have to place trades over the phone, which could be rather cumbersome, especially if one wanted to place multiple trades in a short space of time. Indeed, online trading has opened a new field of trading in the form of foreign exchange scalping, whether manually, or by way of automated trading robots. An example of online trading is the trading the foreign exchange market with a forex broker, using a platform which the broker will provide. The trader installs the platform on their computer, and they are given the information and tools needed to start trading. The most common online retail platform for forex trading is known as MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Read this Term to gambling.

The governmental bodies that have been working on the proposition are the Ministry of Finance, the government’s legal advisor, the ISA, and the consultation and legislation department in the Ministry of Law.

Up until now, binary options firms dealing with clients living outside of Israel have been able to operate legally, without requiring any sort of authorization or  Regulation  Regulation Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the US’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Australian Security and Investment Commission (ASIC), and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) are the most widely dealt with authorities in the FX industry.In its most basic sense, regulators help ensure the filing of reports and transmission of data to help police and monitor activity by brokers. Regulators also serve as a countermeasure against market abuse and malpractice by brokers. Brokers adhering to a list of mandated rules are authorized to provide investment activities in a given jurisdiction. By extension, many unauthorized or unregulated entities will also seek to market their services illegally or function as a clone of a regulated operation.Regulators are essential in snuffing out these scam operations as they prevent significant risks for investors.In terms of reporting, brokers are also required to regularly file reports about their clients’ positions to the relevant regulatory authorities. The most-recent regulatory push in the aftermath of the Great Financial Crisis of 2008 has delivered a material shift in the regulatory reporting landscape.Brokers typically outsource the reporting to other companies which are connecting the trade repositories used by regulators to the broker’s systems and are handling this crucial element of compliance.Beyond FX, regulators help reconcile all matters of oversight and are watchdogs for each industry. With ever-changing information and protocols, regulators are always working to promote fairer and more transparent business practices from brokers or exchanges. Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the US’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Australian Security and Investment Commission (ASIC), and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) are the most widely dealt with authorities in the FX industry.In its most basic sense, regulators help ensure the filing of reports and transmission of data to help police and monitor activity by brokers. Regulators also serve as a countermeasure against market abuse and malpractice by brokers. Brokers adhering to a list of mandated rules are authorized to provide investment activities in a given jurisdiction. By extension, many unauthorized or unregulated entities will also seek to market their services illegally or function as a clone of a regulated operation.Regulators are essential in snuffing out these scam operations as they prevent significant risks for investors.In terms of reporting, brokers are also required to regularly file reports about their clients’ positions to the relevant regulatory authorities. The most-recent regulatory push in the aftermath of the Great Financial Crisis of 2008 has delivered a material shift in the regulatory reporting landscape.Brokers typically outsource the reporting to other companies which are connecting the trade repositories used by regulators to the broker’s systems and are handling this crucial element of compliance.Beyond FX, regulators help reconcile all matters of oversight and are watchdogs for each industry. With ever-changing information and protocols, regulators are always working to promote fairer and more transparent business practices from brokers or exchanges. Read this Term. Recently the ISA, among other local authorities, received numerous complaints regarding the financial losses of clients from countries around the world who have traded with Israeli companies. A large number of these companies were offering binary options trading.

The ISA Head, Prof, Shmuel Hauser commented: “On top of the severe financial damage binary options providers cause to foreign citizens, they are continue to damage Israel’s international image and instigating anti-Semitism towards Jewish people in general and Israelis in particular. The new law will allow the ISA to act against those factors which on-board foreign citizens in an unprecedented manner which includes the imposing of civil and criminal sanctions and even imprisonment.”

An open war

The ISA declared open war on the binary options industry over a year ago. Its first dramatic step was to ban the offering of binary options to Israeli citizens back in March 2016. Last year at the same conference, Prof. Hauser made some extreme remarks against binary options, saying that it is a fraudulent industry that “burns the money of orphans, widows and pensioners”.

The moves against the Israeli binary options industry have taken their toll on both brokers and technology providers over the past year. The last six months alone saw the complete closure of Banc De Binary, the closure of the local call centers of 24Options and Anyoption, and dozens of unregulated binary option providers shutting down their businesses.